European Research Centre for
Anti-Corruption and State-Building

at the Hertie School of Governance, Berlin

Russian Watchdog GOLOS Fined under Foreign Agents Law

Since it was signed in July 2012, the Russian law on foreign agents has raised much controversy. Its requirements that all organisations receiving funds from abroad register as foreign agents has been seen as a clear instrument to target and restrict the activities of civil society organisations and international donors in the country. The first concrete measures in this direction were seen already last September, when American development agency USAID was forced to leave the country. Earlier this year, several foreign NGOs have also been subject to raids in their offices. Now a fine imposed to independent election watchdog GOLOS indicates that the government’s actions based on this law continue to escalate ⇥